W. Jordan freight train derailment slowed TRAX commuters

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A partial freight train derailment in West Jordan brought nearby TRAX light rail traffic to a crawl during Wednesday morning's commute, but was cleared by noon.

The 3:30 a.m. Wednesday derailment involved the front two engines of a Savage Systems freight train hauling 15 cars, 10 of them empty and five containing tanker loads of isobutane gas. None of the tankers were compromised, but the engines, while upright, were teetering off the rails near 4000 W. 9000 South in West Jordan.

Savage spokeswoman Rebecca Boucher confirmed that no injuries occurred and none of the cars behind the engines had derailed. She said the cause of the accident was under investigation, though company personnel reported were looking at the possibility of a faulty rail switch being a factor.

Light rail traffic  specifically the "Red" line leading to the University of Utah campus  was delayed about 15-20 minutes as trains shared the one remaining rail span to get through the accident scene.

Utah Transit Authority spokesman Remi Barron said that in addition to that, a "bus bridge" was used to ferry commuters around the scene.

Reader comments on sltrib.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Salt Lake Tribune. We will delete comments containing obscenities, personal attacks and inappropriate or offensive remarks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. If you see an objectionable comment, please alert us by clicking the arrow on the upper right side of the comment and selecting "Flag comment as inappropriate". If you've recently registered with Disqus or aren't seeing your comments immediately, you may need to verify your email address. To do so, visit disqus.com/account. See more about comments here.